BECU Trust Services is a trade name used by MEMBERS® Trust Company under license from BECU. Trust services are provided by MEMBERS® Trust
Company, a federal thrift regulated by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. Trust and investment products are not deposits of or guaranteed by
the trust company, a credit union or credit union affiliate, are not insured or guaranteed by the NCUA, FDIC or any other governmental agency, and are
subject to investment risks, including possible loss of the principal amount invested.

BECU is a not-for-profit credit union, dedicated to the philosophy of people
helping people. BECU Trust Services shares the same philosophy. We see our
role as more than just managing money–our first priority is taking care of our
clients needs.

So when it comes to Settlement Trusts, we always have the best interests of your
client in mind. We act as trustee, and work to manage trust assets and protect
them from financial risks that affect them today, and in the future.

If an explanation of the contradictionis offered, then the issue is simply onefor the trier of fact. On December 29,2014, the Court of Appeals reversed thetrial court’s application of the MarshallRule, where the (a) party (Taylor) had (b)offered an explanation of his prior, con-tradictory, statement:… whether the explanation is plau-sible is an issue to be determinedby the trier of fact. Safeco Ins. Co.v. McGrath, 63 Wash.App. 170, 175,817 P.2d 861 (1991).

Taylor v. Bell, P.3d ----, 2014 WL
7387790, (2014, WL at p. 11).

In conclusion, if a judge applies the
Marshall Rule to exclude evidence, it is
clear error.

If a judge finds contradictory statements insufficient to survive summary
judgment, that is clear error if party provides an explanation for the contradiction, as the plausibility of that explanation is a jury question.

The Marshall rule is a narrow rule
that a sworn statement of a party that
contradicts prior sworn testimony is
insufficient — without explanation or other
witness or documentary support — to
create a genuine issue of material fact to
survive summary judgment.

Craig A. Mason, Spokane

CORRECTION: The article “A
Brief History of the Death Penalty In Washington” (March 2015
NWLawyer) stated that, until recently, all counties except King
have abandoned the death penalty,
when, in fact, the death penalty has
been sought in other Washington
counties, in recent years.